Russia

The Russian pharmaceutical market is one of the fastest-growing markets worldwide with an annual growth over ten percent during the last couple of years.

In 2015, the pharmaceutical market in Russia grew by almost 12% in value terms compared to the previous year and accounted for 16.5 billion USD (1.28 trillion RUB). Forecasts further predict a growth of approximately 8% in 2016. According to market experts, this steady market growth is mainly due to inflation and growing drug prices, caused by the devaluation of the local currency. The pharmaceutical industry can be seen as the most sustainable segment of the Russian economy due to its strong social impact. Although the Russian pharmaceutical market has a huge potential, a long-term growth forecast is not possible due to the unstable political and economic situation.

In 2014, domestic dugs accounted for about a quarter of the Russian pharmaceutical retail market in value terms; however, they dominated the market in volume terms with a share of 55.3% at the same time. Although imported drugs are still important for the Russian market, foreign manufacturers, especially those producing medicines that are on the list of vital drugs, currently produce at a loss due to the ongoing devaluation of the rouble.
Compared to other countries, the Russian pharmaceutical market was ranked seventh among all major global pharmaceutical markets, with the largest market being in the USA. In contrast with the EU and the USA, however, the Russian pharmaceutical market is mainly controlled by the commercial segment rather than government purchasing.